Evil Dead Burn

An absolute horror rampage of graphic gore, laughs and suspense, EVIL DEAD BURN is every bit the equal of 2023's "Evil Dead Rise", spewing forth the crazy tale of a new family facing their very twisted & determined demons.

The unchallenged star of this well directed new entry is Cinematographer Philip Lozano (The Transporter). His camerawork here is a genius series of thrill rides that defy logic. I laughed out loud at least four times as his camera found a new way to depict absolute horrors. His off-kilter approach and kinetic camera work draw you closer to the action, giving you nowhere to hide as chomping, drooling, bloody, bone crunching demons chase their prey.

Check out this minute long teaser trailer for just a taste of what I'm talking about:

The entire film is packed with sequences like that, it's a hell of a lot of fun, if you love your horror packed with unflinching gore and terror, like I do!

If you've been a fan of producer Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell's series, they both return in those roles here, unleashing their legacy to new director Sebastien Vanicek, whose 2023 spider horror film "Infested"I need to look up based on his work here.

He brings a frantic energy and imposing sense of dread to this chapter. Once he puts his foot to the metal, there is no flinching and no brake pedal.

We meet two guys out on a fishing trip that goes horribly wrong, hooking a deadite instead of a trout. The sequence both in the water and in the survivor's car afterward (no spoilers here!!) was the first time that I know I was in for a treat. Vanicek brings a nasty, skewered take to everything, his vision built to maximize every slimy drop of blood and gristle.

We meet a French woman, Alice (Souhella Yacoub) at the night club that she and her very angry husband William (the suitably vile George Pullar) own. After an argument, he storms off in his car and meets a very untimely, unnatural death. This is one of those marriages on Dateline that serves up plenty of evidence of an abusive spouse, but William's family thinks he's a saint.

After the funeral, they ask Alice back to join the family at their decrepit house deep in the woods (aren't the houses in these films ALWAYS deep in the woods and filled with decaying wood?).

William's mother Susan (Tandi Wright) is the firm matriarch, her husband Edgar (a killer Erroll Shand) proves William didn't fall far from the abusive tree and WIlliam's brother Joseph (Hunter Doohan) seems to be the lone kind member of the family, alongside his girlfriend.

Their Alzheimer's ridden Grandma Polly (Maude Davey) rounds out the mourning family with a hard edged cloud of complete dementia. One minute she's accusing someone of stealing from her, the next she has flashed back three decades.

I sat there twenty minutes in, knowing that when hell broke loose, this was going to be one crazy lot of characters to square off for survival against a demon hoard.

Vanicek had me hook line and sinker with his keen eye for suspense and scares. I sat through the funeral just knowing that something very bad was going to happen.

It's AFTER the funeral that things really get crazy, thanks to those mysterious recordings and books in the attic that Joseph has been researching. WIld tales of evil demons and a book of the dead. Oh-oh.

As soon as the deadites are unleashed, the film hits its wild stride and never stops except for just long enough to catch your breath. Whether you'll be catching your breath from laughing or puking depends entirely on your tolerance. I couldn't stop laughing.

These demons have a very nasty sense of humor and as in the entire series, know how to deliver a good horror flick one liner.

Davey (The Leftovers) is a find as Grandma. The minute I saw that slow motion seat elevator in the stairway, I knew it would come into play, but never in this funny a manner.

Yacoub (Dune: Part 2) is excellent as Alice. She kicks ass, holds her own and never does anything stupid like run back into the fire for a dog or hide behind the chainsaws in the shed. She's got a survivor's instinct and balls of steel. She's going to need them against the relentless wave of demon possessed in-laws marauding in her direction.

This is a visceral film, a survivor experience.

You will feel like you've been through a marathon by its finale. The viciousness of the attacks and gore are relentless.

The headrest stuck in Thya's face will be a classic within the series. It's slimy, laugh out loud funny and horrifying, all in the same moment. Luciane Buchanan (The Night Agent) sells it perfectly.

There is a wild scene in the finale that I assumed was filmed with the kind of rotating room they used to film Jobeth Williams dragged across the ceiling in "Poltergeist", but Vanicek said they didn't have the budget for that, so it was all done with cables. It's visually impressive as hell.

As is the scene in the chimney. The camera angle choices in those two minutes are pure horror film genius. Vanicek & Lozano are creating some sort of mad horror visual alchemy here that's inspiring in its creativity.

I loved the ride.

Make sure and stay through the credits for a mid credits and a post credits scene that are both vital to complete AND extend the story!

EVIL DEAD BURN is pure fire and gets a very solid B+, the same as its bloody predecessor. The next sequel is already in the works.

Do me a favor. Don't leave that dishwasher loaded and open. Someone's libel to get hurt!